Restaurant Review: Kensington Grill

Last weekend, Badge and I went to Kensington Grill. It's been on my list of restaurants to try for quite some time now, but two things have prevented us from going: 1) Kensington is far 2) we are lazy.

On that particular day, we were feeling energetic and adventurous. And hungry. Very hungry. Unable to wait until a respectable dinner hour, we got there at 5pm just in time for opening.

First up, a sampling of bruschetta: mango salsa and brie, spicy baba ganoush with tomato compote, and smoked salmon with cucumber salad. Wow. This was delicious. My favorite was the spicy baba ganoush because it was warm, dense, and so flavorful. The smoked salmon was a close second though it couldn't have been more different. Chilled, light, and refreshing. Yum. The mango salsa and brie was my least favorite. The two just didn't make a great combination, both from a texture and flavor standpoint. Still quite edible, just didn't dazzle my taste buds.

Next up, a delicious fig salad. Pretty simple, can't go wrong when figs meet cheese.

Then, a small plate of mac n shrooms. It had all the ooey gooey goodness of mac n cheese plus the earthy flavor of mushrooms and crunchy layer of panko. I could have eaten this as a meal unto itself. We actually considered ordering another but thought we should try more things.

Next in line was the shrimp waffle. This intriguing menu item did not disappoint. Topped with marinated onions and peppers and some sort of mystery sauce, it made for a unique and satisfying dish. At some point while eating this, I did have a fleeting desire for waffles soaked in syrup and berries but the desire wasn't so strong that I had to race out of the restaurant for the nearest IHOP.

And finally we had ravioli with black bean sauce. In retrospect I can't remember what was actually in the ravioli. I do remember it was tasty though maybe not compelling enough for me to order it again.

Paired with wine and ending with a decadent snicker brownie plus ice cream dessert, the meal was quite good. We were thoroughly pleased with Kensington Grill and will be back soon.